Stephen B King: Thoughts on Strong Women in My Fiction

          When Kat invited me to participate on her blog, Wild Women Authors, the title of the web site helped me see something which I hadn’t realised about myself, and more importantly as an author. Further, it dawned on me that I had developed a trait in writing – without knowing that I had.

          Like most men, if you asked me, I would admit that in real life overly strong women have less appeal to me (no, not frighten) than the traditional demure, and feminine kind, or so I thought. Yet my wife was, as a child, a definite ‘tom boy’ and still is. Her passion in life (after our three children) is renovating houses, and she will willingly take part and be my trades assistant and get filthy with me. She paints, gets a splinter carrying lumber, mixes concrete and mortar while I spread and lay bricks…… well, you get the picture. I adore her, and always will, and not just because we work well together.

          When I look back at the books I’ve written BC (short for Before Coming to The Wild Rose Press, with my romantic thriller called Thirty-Three Days) I’m somewhat astounded when I think about the inner strength and fortitude of my female leads. Without giving spoilers, here is a brief run down:

Forever Night: Jayne is the sister of Amanda, who is hunted mercilessly by her psychologically scared, ex- returned soldier husband who has become a serial killer in his relentless pursuit of her. Jayne falls for, and insists she teams up with, Dillon, the cop who led the task force to track down the man the press has dubbed The Perth Ripper. Dillon’s wife was murdered and he has been suspended from the force when he continues his investigation and meets Jayne. Together, they are heading for a devastating confrontation with her brother-in-law, and Jayne is an integral part of that showdown.

Domin8: (Book 1 Sam Collins Trilogy) Shannon is a nurse who looks after Dave in hospital after he is shot by a lunatic husband of a woman Dave has bedded. Dave has been dabbling in sex chat rooms and dating sites specialising in affairs for married people. He has been targeted, and one by one his lovers and finally his wife are murdered. Shannon is determined not to fall for Dave’s charms, no matter how tempted, but she slowly becomes entangled in not only him, but the final confrontation with a serial killer who wants to exact revenge on Dave.

The Vigilante Taxi (Book 2 of Sam Collins Trilogy): Deidre, Didi to her friends, has had a miserable life. Her ex left her when she was seven months pregnant, and with the help of friends she is bringing up Siobhan, her beautiful daughter. She is forced to work as a lap dancer to support them, though unlike others, she doesn’t turn tricks to supplement her income. One night after work she is rescued from two rapists in an alley by Nicky, a taxi driver who has had more than his fair share of tragedy in his life too. He is the man the media have dubbed ‘The Northbridge Vigilante’. Didi doesn’t know it, but Nicki has shot five men while in the act of violent crimes and saved the lives of the victims. But, his last shooting, was the brother of the head of the Perth drug trade and violent biker gang. Didi and Nicky have found the happiness they have been searching for, and five-year-old Siobhan has the father she never had. But the police are closing in, and with them, a drug dealer who’s only goal in life is to murder his brother’s killer, and he targets Didi to lure Nicky to his death.

Repo: Jayne and Dillon (from Forever Night) are back as private investigators, and together they try to find the wife of Mark, who has vanished. Mark returned from his shift at the mines to find not only his wife gone, but bank accounts empty and credit card maxed out. But worse, his prized, fully restored Phase 3 GTHO GT Ford has been repossessed, but the repossession company deny all knowledge of it. When the woman’s body is found, Mark is arrested for her murder, and Jayne and Dillon must enter a world of illegal poker games to find the true killer, and free Mark.